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Dynamic instabilities under isotropic drained compression of idealized granular materials

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Abstract

The compressibility behaviour of loose and contracting granular assemblies, normally consolidated and overconsolidated, under isotropic drained compression is investigated in this paper. Short cylindrical samples of water-saturated monodisperse glass beads, initially assembled in loose state by moist-tamping technique, are isotropically compressed in a classical axisymmetric triaxial machine. Very loose glass bead samples experience numerous unexpected events, sometimes cascading, under undetermined triggered effective isotropic stress in loading and in unloading, while the classical compressibility behaviour of granular material is recovered once these events ignored. Each event, resembling the stick–slip instability during shear in triaxial compression, is characterized by a transient dynamic phase I with very fast drop of effective isotropic stress \(\sigma ^{'}\) due to an excess pore pressure development at nearly constant volume and constant axial strain, followed by a quasi-static phase II with gradual increase in axial \(\varepsilon _\mathrm{a}\) (contraction) and volumetric \(\varepsilon _\mathrm{v}\) (compaction) strain, and a full progressive recovery of \(\sigma ^{'}\) to the previous level before event. A short-lived liquefaction with null \(\sigma ^{'}\) measured in the first phase I results in a local collapse state. Collapse events also happen on unsaturated moist and dry states. Rare events even occur during the unloading of subsequent isotropic compression cycles. The effects of triggered isotropic stress are discussed, the instability characteristics measured, the comparison with stick–slip instability made and the hypothesis of micro-structural instability with local collapse of contact networks and rapid micro-structural rearrangement argued.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank J. Scheibert and J.-N. Roux, for very fruitful discussions; C. Dano for providing \(e_\mathrm{min}\), \(e_\mathrm{max}\) and the SEM figures; J. Blanc-Gonnet, S. Cointet, L. Giraud, M. Guibert, D. Roux, F. Sallet and S. Zara for technical supports; and two anonymous reviewers for helpful suggestions making this work synthetic and attractive.

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  1. Ecole Nationale des Travaux Publics de l’Etat, LGCB, LTDS (UMR 5513), 2 Rue M. Audin, 69518, Vaulx en Velin Cedex, France

    T. Doanh, N. Abdelmoula, L. Gribaa, T. T. T. Nguyên, S. Hans & C. Boutin

  2. Ecole Centrale de Lyon, LTDS (UMR 5513), 36 avenue Guy-de-Collongue, 69134, Ecully Cedex, France

    A. Le Bot

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Doanh, T., Abdelmoula, N., Gribaa, L. et al. Dynamic instabilities under isotropic drained compression of idealized granular materials. Acta Geotech. 12, 657–676 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11440-016-0514-0

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